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Us tight travellers have visited Bangkok twice now. Reason being, it’s the cheapest place to fly to when you’re visiting Thailand. Our first trip, we weren’t dead impressed. Our second trip, we explored more of what the city had to offer – even though this was limited by jet lag and food poisoning. We could be up for a third visit, but I think with that we would want to get off the beaten track.
First, let’s talk about transport. You can book cheap flights like we do with SkyScanner. We try to keep dates flexible to get the best deals.
Once you’ve landed in Bangkok, the easiest (but not cheapest) option is to get yourself a Grab. But if you’re all about saving those pennies, get yourself on the Skytrain. This cost us 45baht each (£1.04 each!). We also found the trick with getting public transport, is to ALWAYS cross the road. Cross the road from the bus station, the train station, cross to the side of the road you want to travel down (especially when there’s a central reservation) and get the price lower. We also did many comparisons, we got the fare up on Grab and used this to barter for a tuk tuk. Don’t want to be getting ripped off now.
Where to stay in Bangkok
Our first visit, we weren’t used to such cheap luxury – so of course we splashed out. We paid £17 each for 3 nights at Nanda Heritage Hotel.
Our second visit to Bangkok, we decided to keep it cheap and cheerful (although it wasn’t too cheerful). We booked a private room, with a shared bathroom, at Mind Day Hostel for £5 each per night. Located a quick walk away from the infamous Khoa San Road, we had a right laugh at this location. Bare in mind, you get what you pay for.
But there are so many options of places to stay, depending if you’re wanting something cheap as chips, or a prepared to splash out for a few nights. We compared a lot of our stays between booking.com, trip.com, and hostelworld to secure the lowest price.
What to do in Bangkok
You can book through GetYourGuide here and use TIGHTTRAVELLERS5 for money off your trip. Because we love being tight, and we want you to save them pennies too!
Let’s start with those top tourist spots and then try to get off the beaten track a bit.
The Grand Palace is 100% already on your radar. This costs around 500baht to enter, bit of a pricier attraction but definitely worth a visit. Remember to dress modestly, or you will be buying an emergency pair of elephant pants from one of the many stalls outside. We speak from experience. Also, be aware of the scams – when they tell you it’s not open when it is.
Sticking with this theme, you can also visit The Ancient City which has a ridiculous amount of temples (including a replica of the Grand Palace if you’d rather kill 2 birds). We made our own way there using public transport but when we arrived were encouraged to buy the tickets on Trip.com to get a better price. You can book yours here.
Another top spot: Chatuchak Weekend Market. We visited on both our trips to Bangkok and best believe we ain’t seen half of it. This is very much a buy when you see it sort of place, you’re not finding that same stall again. Think a windy narrow maze. On our second visit, all paths seemed to lead back to the clock tower, we couldn’t get away! But on our first visit we didn’t even see the clock tower.
Honestly you could spend all day wandering around this market discovering such a variety, from trinkets, to home decor, a brand new wardrobe, and even a pet section which is cool to check out. There are so many places to eat, and an air conditioned mall somewhere near the middle (we think) where you can use the FREE toilets and get your bearings.
The floating market is another popular one to visit, although we never managed to get here. Maybe we’ll save that for our next visit.
Another place just as hectic, Chinatown. We visited our first time to Bangkok, and get ready to be overwhelmed. Street food lines the roads along with crowds of people and it feels like it lasts for miles. You just have to throw yourself in there. But big queues usually means good food, so sometimes is worth waiting that little bit extra.
A bit off the beaten track now with the Amulet Market. Similarly to Chatuchak, there are rows and rows of stalls down narrow passageways. There didn’t seem to be much English spoken here, but are tons of amulets with superstitious powers. The same amulet ranging from 10baht to 1000baht based on how much good luck it will bring you. This also comes with some great people watching- a lot of men with magnifying glasses getting a right good luck at each of these amulets. And I mean, they aren’t wrong to. We bought one each, and Will’s followed with a string of bad luck, it had to be thrown. Is that bad luck?
Another one we have not done, but is 100% up there and a bit more off the beaten track is a visit to Wat Bang Phra. This is about an hour out of the city, but I think could be worth the visit. This temple is famous for its traditional bamboo Sak Yant tattoos. These are designed by monks and are believed to offer powerful blessings. Again, loving the superstition.
And that’s just a few of the many things to do in Bangkok. Make sure you save these for your trip, and let us know on socials how your visit was and what other activities we need to add to our bucket list!
We also have a map in the works if anyone is interested?
Tight Travellers 